LETTERS: Some Things To Remember When You Go To The Polls Monday – Waco Tribune-Herald

Remember this

With the primary election coming up it’s important that we, the voters, remember a few things.

Remember when your application for a ballot by mail is rejected because you put in a driver’s license number and your voter file (that you filled out decades ago) has your Social Security number on it (or no number at all), it was the Republicans that rejected it and caused this confusion.

When you are forced to carry an unwanted or dangerous pregnancy to term, remember it was Anderson, Kacal, Birdwell and the other Republicans that have put themselves in the middle of that intensely personal and private decision.

When your kid wants to play ball, remember the Republicans want to have a look at their birth certificate and their genitals to make sure they match.

When your neighborhood school’s library shelves are empty of books that make Republicans uncomfortable, remember that they are too scared to read them (but should), and they don’t want your kids to learn.

When you have an empty chair at the dinner table because of COVID-19, remember it’s Republicans that resist getting vaccinated and the GOP that blocked efforts to have society follow basic, common-sense rules to stop the spread of this virus.

When you earn too much income with your minimum wage jobs, but not enough to actually pay for insurance, remember that the GOP refuses to expand Medicaid in Texas.

When you live in East Waco, four blocks from state Rep. Doc Anderson’s office, but your state representative’s office is over an hour away, remember that it was Republicans that gerrymandered you out of fair representation with the rest of your community.

When your electricity fails and your electric bill soars, remember that for 20-plus years the GOP has put its friends on the ERCOT board and lined their pockets with donations from their energy industry buddies, and written legislation with loopholes big enough to drive a tanker truck through.

Remember that the Republican Party officially declared the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol and events that led to it as “legitimate political discourse.”

Early voting starts Monday. Remember.

Cheryl Foster, Waco

Oversight for all

Regarding the Associated Press story by Kimberlee Kruesi’s [Feb. 6], I agree that there should be much more oversight and monitoring of the distribution of taxpayer money. So let’s begin with Planned Parenthood as a recipient of a wealth of taxpayer funds. In spite of an excess of $2 billion in assets (2019-20 report), we, the U.S. taxpayers, contributed over $618 million to Planned Parenthood in that same reporting period. Yes, PP does provide a limited number of medical treatments/exams, but what they’re most proud of is the 354,871 abortions performed (2019-20), up almost 10,000 from the previous year.

Conversely, Waco’s Care Net Pregnancy Center has saved the lives of 105 “pre-born” babies in the past 12 months. Contrary to Kruesi’s story, Care Net, like many crisis pregnancy centers, does provide medical care with its prenatal care program in addition to ultrasounds and STD testing/treatment, plus provides housing and support for young pregnant mothers who decide to give life rather that abort it. By the way, Care Net is privately funded except for a small percentage that comes from the Texas Pregnancy Assistance Fund.

Bob Lehman, Meridian